How old is your diesel engine?

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bluedragon

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Just wondering how many forumites out there have old diesels (say >30 years old) that are still running well or even beautifully? Conventional wisdom (i.e. boating mags!) seems to be that after 30y they are fit only for mooring weights, but my 1969 Sabb 8HP runs very sweetly. I don't really see any need to consider a new engine for many years to come providing I give it lots of TLC (which I do). Who else has "old but good" diesels...are we being fooled into new engines because cold starting gets difficult? My Sabb has a particular cold starting procedure that has to be understood and followed (different in summer & winter), but once running it has NEVER stopped.
 
My two 1961 perkins still go fine, as does the Ford petrol engine in the freeman 22 which is 1967! That one stops quite often, but always goes again once you restart it.

Dont make them like they used to!
 
Not quite that old but we've got a 1980 Volvo MD17C. Had it rebuilt in Trinidad last year because it was burning more oil than it should. Great piece of kit, low revving, simple, starts first time everytime, built like the proverbial.
 
How old is old? I looked at a boat the other week that had the original 1974 Volvo engine still in. It had been rebuilt at some stage and the total hours were about 6500. It started just fine and ran quite sweetly. I guess it's not really the age in years but the hours run and importantly how well it has been looked after.

I wonder what the running time threshold is for an engine?
 
C'mon, surely it depends on how much use the darn thing gets?

My '65 Perkins had little use in a combine harvester, and not much more in this boat until recently. It still sounds sweet (tho' the add-on bits - exhaust, starter, waterpump, hoses, are having to be replaced) but some day a rebore is inevitable.

My previous had lotsa engine use - 400 hrs a year I recall - and one day it got sick and died. It was a solid old Volvo MD1B and a rebore made it look and sound like new. But then, it was a substantial engine - the yard were confident it could have another one without any probs.

BUT you said it: they don't make 'em like they used to!
 
1972 4.108 Perkins. Still going well.

If it ever shows signs of a problem I have promised it a full rebuild. It is the least I can do for it, since it never let us down when we needed it.
 
It's not quite comparable, but my car (Volvo 740, petrol injection) has done 277,000 miles so far, which some consider a lot. I did have one major engine rebuild 2 years ago after a main bearing went, but nothing else to speak off. (Piston rings, big ends etc. were all in spec so left alone, oil pump was wearing so renewed.) At an average of around 40 mph, say, that's about 7,000 hours so far. That's less than 1 year! Consider diesel generators which are expected to run more or less continuously for year after year...
 
As old as the boat! Sabb 10hp...bomb proof, totaly reliable, hand start easy! Will probably pull it out this winter for an overhaul, mainly because it needs repainting...I'm betting that inside it's fine!
 
I have two ford d types (590's) that were old when they were put in the boat when it was built....circaearly to mid 60's....still run fine...done endless trips to france on them
 
Another MD17C still going strong, no idea of the age or it's history, but starts easily and will (and has) run all day.
Just got rid of Ford Escort with over 300,000 on the clock, bodywork was infested with tinworm engine still fine. Replaced with Peugeot 405 with just 213,000 so far and running like a new motor.
Regular oil and filter changes seem to be all a diesel needs.
 
I 'retired' my YSM12 to a Trapper 300 a couple of years ago. Never been rebuilt and was fitted to my last boat in 1980.

My local Yanmar agent still has rebuild kit in stock!

Donald
 
Sold our 760 Turbo with 260,000 miles on it, never rebuilt just oil and filter every month, no major parts other than a turbo just after buying under warranty. Had 14,000 when we bought it. I'm sure what made it last so long was that it spent almost all its life on the continent doing sensible speeds rather than stuck in a traffic jam in the UK.
 
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